


Sunburnt Summers Are Meant For Playing Games

by serotoninwife



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Everyone is nice, F/M, Gendrya - Freeform, Gendrya Big Bang, Modern AU, Riverrun, confident!arya, himbo!gendry, myrcella is a former horse girl, summer vacation AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-19
Updated: 2020-07-25
Packaged: 2021-03-05 01:02:00
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,552
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25385716
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/serotoninwife/pseuds/serotoninwife
Summary: To be fair, he didn’t really haveanyexpectations as to what she’d look like in the present day, but whatever he might have thought, he certainly wasn’t ready when the car door opened and Arya Stark stepped out looking likethat.
Relationships: Arya Stark/Gendry Waters, Jon Snow/Ygritte (background), Lyanna Stark/Arthur Dayne (background), robb stark/talisa maegyr (background)
Comments: 24
Kudos: 128





	1. You Look Different

**Author's Note:**

  * For [youwouldbemylady](https://archiveofourown.org/users/youwouldbemylady/gifts).



If he was being perfectly honest, Gendry had nearly _rejected_ the Stark’s offer to join them on vacation that summer. He had steady work as a mechanic in King’s Landing which brought in a steady stream of (rather necessary) paychecks and if his adoptive mother, Cersei, hadn’t offered to cover his share of rent for the three months they’d be in the Riverlands, he wouldn’t have been able to go. Looking back, he thought it was truly mad how his life could’ve just gone on the same as it always had if he hadn’t been able to fork over three months of rent to his roommate, Hot Pie.

It had been only a couple months since Gendry had last seen Jon Dayne, but a solid year since he’d last seen any other Starks or Stark-adjacents. It still felt weird calling him Jon Dayne, despite the fact that seven years had passed since he’d had it legally changed from Stark. He’d done it at a courthouse on his eighteenth birthday to match the surname of his stepdad, mother, and little sister upon finally being adopted. To Gendry, however, his childhood friend would always be Jon Stark.

They’d seen one another when Jon was down in the capital for a business trip approximately seven months prior. He’d met a nice red headed woman named Ygritte Snow at a pub called Castle Black six months before that, and Jon had been absolutely smitten. So it was no surprise that now she was wearing a diamond ring on her left hand that Gendry could see glittering in the sunlight as she drove the gaggle of Starks and Stark adjacents from the Trident City Airport towards the giant beach house where they’d be spending the summer.

In the car was Ygritte Snow, Jon Dayne, Lynara Dayne, Theon Stark, Sansa Stark, Bran Stark, and Gendry Baratheon. When his plane had landed, he was greeted by a hoard of Starks and Stark-adjacents with an intensity both in volume and enthusiasm that could’ve rivaled the neighborhood block parties from their youth. Lynnie was chatting with Ygritte up in the front while Theon, Sansa, and Bran discussed birthday gifts for their father in the middle row while Jon and Gendry sat in contented silence in the back.

“So you’ve not met the doctor yet, have you?” Jon asked, his voice low. Gendry looked up from his phone before furrowing his brows.

“Have we got a doctor in our midst this year?” He asked. Jon grinned in that goofy knowing way he always did and nodded.

“A very pregnant prodigy doctor, yeah. Her name’s Talisa Maegyr— Fuck, Maegyr- _Stark_ , now. God only knows how Robb landed her. She was born in Volantis, started uni at age sixteen, and now she’s a pediatric heart surgeon. They got married about a year ago, and now she’s nearly fit to pop.” Jon said, sounding just as impressed as if it were the first he were hearing about her accomplishments as he relayed them to Gendry. The tall mechanic raised his brows, impressed, yet unsettled that this was the first he was hearing of his childhood best friends’ marriage and impending fatherhood. Last he’d heard Robb had just moved in with a new girlfriend. However, he shook off his discomfort as Ygritte turned off of the smoothly paved road and onto the rough loose gravel lane way that would bring them to Riverrun. The lane was nearly half a mile of loose white pebble flanked on either side by gentle little streams of water that ran an inch or two deep between the blades of green grass, giving the ground the constant illusion of movement. Large mossy willows flowed gently with the breeze as the large summer estate that Mrs. Stark had inherited following her father’s passing loomed before them, standing proudly on its stilts. When they parked the van, everybody climbed out and began greeting the three mums who were all sat on the little patio under the main deck. Lyanna Dayne embraced her two children before helping to bring the bags up, Catelyn Stark took count of her three, and Cersei smiled as she welcomed her son with open arms.

“It’s good to see you, Mum.” He whispered as they embraced. He could feel her smiling as she squeezed him just a bit tighter.

“It’s good to see you too, darling.” She whispered. When they separated, she rubbed his back as he went to grab his luggage. “How was your day yesterday? I’m sorry I didn’t get around to calling you.” She asked, arms crossed as Gendry grabbed his bags from the car. He shrugged, attempting nonchalance, but he knew it was a point of tension— it being his yearly visits to his _real_ mother’s grave on the anniversary of her death. Ella, his biological mother and his father’s first wife, had died when he was two years old after being hit by a trolly in King’s Landing, and every year, he would visit her grave. Cersei had adopted him early on in his childhood, loved him and raised him just as dearly and truly as she did his three younger siblings, her own biological children, Joffrey, Myrcella, and Tommen. But he had been born to another woman, another mother, and she had always feared that one day he might decide that he liked the first one better, which was, of course, ridiculous, but deep down she feared it happening nonetheless.

“It was alright. Nothing eventful. Got packed, had lunch with Mum. Went home, ate dinner, went to bed.” Cersei smiled tightly and nodded as she helped him haul the bags up the stairs and into the house, already buzzing with conversation and livelihood. Gendry could sense her discomfort at the use of the word _mum_. “Had a rather one sided conversation about work. She’s not a very good conversationalist, you know. Much nicer talking to you.” He added, and Cersei smiled as they both set his bags down by the stairs and began to mingle. He quickly took note of those present and those absent. Rickon and Tommen were away working at a rugby camp in the Vale as counselors, but they were the only two absent people of note. Joffrey, Myrcella, and his father had all given him proper Baratheon bear hugs before separating to mingle. Ned Stark had hugged him and remarked on his great height, Arthr Dayne had hugged him and remarked on his great height, Lyanna Dayne had hugged him and remarked on his great height, Lynnie Dayne had hugged him and remarked on his great height… and then finally after saying _I’m six foot four now_ to every single person in the room, Gendry took a breath. Yet the next moment after that, Gendry found himself approached by yet another old and familiar face.

“Gendry Waters Baratheon, who’d have ever thought we’d be seeing your face around these parts ever again?” Gendry grinned as his dear childhood friend, Robb Stark, approached him and the two met in a firm embrace.

“It’s good to see you, Robb.” He said, patting him on the back before separating. Robb walked over to a cooler and grabbed two beers, tossing one over to his friend. “I heard that you brought a missus with you this year.” Gendry said as he opened the bottle against a countertop in the kitchen, ever so slightly away from all the other noise and mingling in the living room. Robb nodded as he sipped.

“Yeah, and she brought the hatchling.” He said with a grin. Gendry tried not to feel hurt that he hadn’t been invited to the wedding, but he pushed that aside. _Deal with those emotions later, Baratheon._ The tall mechanic nodded, the lull in conversation giving him a moment to look around.

“So is this everyone?” He asked, taking stock of all three of his own siblings, the Daynes, and nearly all of the Starks. Robb shook his head.

“If you’re looking for my wife, Talisa’s down in the pool house. But we’re also still waiting on Arya.” _Arya_ God, it had been a minute since he’d seen her, all baggy clothes and endearing annoyance.

“And how has old Arry been?” He asked, sipping his beer, the cold liquid a soothing sort of shock on his throat.

“She’s been quite well. She just finished her first year of uni over at the University of Braavos. She’s studying acting over there. Absolutely adores it.” Gendry shook his head. Arya in uni. God that was strange to imagine. The two men sipped their beers in silence for a moment, leaning against the kitchen counters before Gendry patted his pockets, finding that they were void of his phone.

“I think I left my phone down in the car, so I’m just gonna go grab it.” He said, Robb nodding and waving in response. Gendry grabbed the car keys off of the key hook and slipped past the throng of friends and family to the front door, slipping out and hopping down the wooden flight of steps. He jogged over to the car and crawled to the backseat, finding his phone sat there. Grinning, he grabbed it and slipped it into his pocket before turning to exit the car, immediately colliding with a very pregnant woman, resulting in him dropping his glass bottle of beer.

“Shit!” They cursed in unison as the pregnant woman jumped back with surprising agility. Gendry looked up from the ground at her as she looked up from her phone at him, the two simultaneously laughing.

“Sorry about that, my face was just buried in my screen, I didn’t even see you there.” She said, sheepishly referring to her phone, but Gendry waved it off.

“No need to apologize, it happens to the best of us. I’m Gendry, by the way.” He extended his right hand still cold from holding the beer which now belonged to the ground, which she shook firmly.

“Talisa. I’m Robb’s wife.” She said, jerking her head toward the house as if to indicate where her husband was.

“Yeah I figured.” He said, trailing off as he crouched and began to pick up the pieces of the bottle. “So when are you due?” Gendry asked, unsure of what other conversation topics he could use to fill the silence as he picked up the shards of broken glass from amongst the white pebbles of loose gravel in the house lot. Talisa absentmindedly rubbed her belly as she smiled with her response.

“I’m due in six weeks, actually.” The new Mrs. Stark replied. Gendry raised his brows in surprise. The very same Robb Stark who did keg stands at Jeyne Poole’s house parties in high school was now a husband, a successful lawyer, and would be a father by the end of the summer. Holy shit. His childhood best friend was going to be a _dad_ and _soon_. The concept was far too strange to be anything close to reality, so Gendry shoved it to the back of his mind to deal with again in six weeks, tucking it neatly into his repression box.

“Congratulations.” He muttered, grabbing the last of the broken beer bottle shards and tossing them in the recycling bin beneath the stairs, taking a moment to wipe the sweat already forming on his brow in the humid summer air. At that moment, Catelyn stepped out from the wooden framed screen door with a bright smile on her face, looking far down the lane way and waving at somebody in the distance before descending the wooden staircase to join her new daughter-in-law and guest. Gendry could clearly hear the sound of tires on pebble gravel once again, signaling the arrival of the last Starkling.

“There’s Arya! She’ll be dying to see you.” Catelyn said with a smile, squeezing his arm in that warm and maternal way she always did. Gendry hadn’t seen Arya since he’d left for uni six years before, when she was still 4’9” and dressed all in her older brothers’ ill fitting hand-me-downs. It was hard enough to imagine her beyond the age of thirteen, but he supposed he wouldn’t have to imagine long as her white jeep pulled up and parked in the family lot.

To be fair, he didn’t really have _any_ expectations as to what she’d look like in the present day, but whatever he might have thought, he certainly wasn’t ready when the car door opened and Arya Stark stepped out looking like _that._ She pushed her sunglasses up to rest atop her head as she closed the door, jogging towards her mum with open arms. She was wearing a form fitted black bathing suit that plunged low under a pair of denim shorts that made her body look— just fucking _wow._ He watched as she moved from hugging Mrs. Stark to embracing Talisa, and then suddenly, she was turned facing him, unmoving, a mischievous twinkle in her big grey eyes.

“Darling, you remember Gendry, don’t you?” Catelyn asked, seemingly unaware of the tension thicker than the humidity in the air. Arya smirked subtly as she nodded.

“Of course I do, Mum.” She took a moment to look him up and down before her smirk intensified ever so slightly. “He hasn’t changed a bit.” Arya remarked before jogging the few paces over to him to give him a hug.

“It’s really good to see you again, Arry.” He managed to stumble his way through the sentence and even got out his childhood nickname for her as she pressed her body against his. Had she squeezed this close with her mother?

“You too, Gend.” Arya said, returning her own childhood nickname for him a lot more smoothly, her hand lingering just a moment on his arm as she pulled away and _did she just wink at him?_

This would be a weird fucking summer, wouldn’t it?

Arya turned towards the house and began walking towards the front steps, swinging her hips as she did. _No ass should look that good_ He thought as he swallowed hard, following her up the stairs, the two Mrs. Starks following close behind him.

“So Mum, where am I this year?” Arya asked, stopping on the landing before opening the door for Gendry, and he could’ve sworn he saw her smirking at him as he brushed past her.

“Well, given that you and Gendry here were the last to RSVP, we’ve had to stick you in the attic with the adjoining rooms.” Catelyn said. Gendry went pale. _WHAT THE FUCK???_ His brain asked. He did not have an answer to give it. As soon as Talisa and Catelyn had entered the house, Arya shut the door before turning back to Gendry.

“In that case, would you mind helping me with my bags?” Her voice was innocent but her eyes were terribly suggestive and he couldn’t even address the part of him that actually _liked that_. Gendry swallowed again.

“Of course.” He said. She grinned, opening the front door for him once again.

“Perfect.” She said as he began walking down the stairs, and he was shocked to find that he could practically feel her gaze on his ass.

When they reached her Jeep, he unloaded the big suitcase and she grabbed the carry-on bags, the two of them silent until Arya decided to speak up as they headed back towards the stairs.

“It’s been a while since we’ve seen each other.” She noted calmly. He nodded.

“It’s been nearly six years now, hasn’t it?” He replied, feigning nonchalance while his mind was screaming and on fire.

“Six years in August.” The fact that she knew the exact month simultaneously made perfect sense and was thoroughly unsettling. This time, he held the door open for her as she ducked inside. She managed to weave through the throng of people effortlessly and wordless before she began making her way up the stairs, pausing on the landing to smirk at Gendry, awkwardly wrestling his way through with “Excuse me” and “Sorry, lemme just get past” leaving his lips every two seconds. When he finally caught up to her, she was grinning smugly.

“Very efficient.” She whispered before making her way up the second half of the flight of stairs. He rolled his eyes as he followed her down the hallway to the final set of stairs that would lead to their shared attic apartment. The staircase was narrow and steep as Arya climbed, and he could’ve sworn she was making a show of swinging her hips. What the fuck was wrong with him? Her? Him.

She opened the door quickly, albeit a bit awkwardly with the bags when she reached the top, filing in and dropping her bags at the foot of the bed.

“I’ll take this room.” She announced. Gendry nodded, dropping her suitcase before opening the door, his mouth wide with something akin to surprise or protest when he saw a small bathroom instead of a bedroom. He turned to Arya as if to protest before she chuckled.

“That’s our bathroom. Technically, your room was originally a sitting room, but it has a bed, a window, and outlets.” She slipped past him to open the door to the sitting room, allowing Gendry to enter as he looked around, perplexed.

“There’s no closet or drawers, where will I put my clothes?” He asked. At this, Arya gave a nearly evil grin and _fuck_ it was sexy.

“The wardrobe, closet, and dresser are in _my_ room, so you’re more than welcome to keep your clothes with me.” She said, her voice low and her tone taunting.

“So to get dressed in the morning—“ He began, his throat dry as he realized what that meant.

“You‘ll have to come into my room. Correct.” She purred. He swallowed hard, nearly jumping as she put a hand on his chest.

“Don’t worry. I promise I won’t look.” She whispered before turning slowly, walking through the bathroom and fucking _winking_ before closing the door to her bedroom.

Gendry exhaled shakily to himself, running a hand through his black hair as he realized the staircase only led in and out through her room. Jesus fucking Christ, what had he just gotten himself into?


	2. Where’s the soap?

The first full night at Riverrun had been... _confusing_ for Gendry. Arya had fucked off to some undisclosed location for a considerable amount of time, allowing Gendry to get set up in his little sitting room. He hung up his one outfit of semi-formal attire in the wardrobe and elected to keep the rest of his clothes neatly in his suitcase, for the time being. His bed was a creaky old thing, twin sized, with noisy springs that screeched every time he shifted. After several hours of adjustment, Gendry finally elected to just take a shower.

The claw-footed ivory bathtub had a shower curtain that could be pulled around an old silver frame, and rather unfortunately, he was taller than the shower curtain in question. Luckily, he was two inches shorter than the head of the shower itself, thank the fucking lord.

He turned on the water, a towel round his waist, the tiny little window towards the top of the bathroom opened to minimize any fogging of the mirror glass.

Gendry reached his hand in and felt the water on his fingertips change from frigid and cold to warm, and the tall man stepped in. He let the water pelt against his skin for a moment, dragging his calloused hands over his face, pushing his black hair back before grabbing a bottle of shampoo. The label was Braavosi, and the scent was of rose petals and vanilla, making it very obviously Arya’s. He wondered if she had ever had anybody else shampoo her hair before, and before long, he was picturing the two of them in the shower, naked as newborns, warm water pelting against their skin, him massaging the shampoo in her scalp while she rubbed the soap against his—

Wait, where was the soap?

Gendry‘s eyes shot open as he experienced a moment of panic, realizing he could not find the bar of soap he could have _sworn_ he’d seen a minute ago. He checked the metal cage that held Arya’s conditioner, shaving cream, and razor, but no soap. Gendry looked around the bathtub one last time before peeking outside of the curtain to see the door to Arya’s bedroom was slightly ajar, the light from her lamps spilling into the steam of the bathroom. _No fucking way she took the soap,_ he thought as he turned off the water and grabbed his towel, tying it around his waist.

“Arya?” He called as he stepped hastily onto the bath rug. The door to her room opened, the nineteen year old standing in the doorway, hips leaning to one side as she casually framed herself in the doorway. She wore a red bikini top that left very little to the imagination and very, _very_ short workout shorts, her dark hair tied in a lazy ponytail with two strands left framing her ever so slightly freckled face.

“Yes?” She asked with a false apathy, her expression largely unamused save for the telling mischievous glint in her large grey eyes. Gendry’s voice caught in his throat at the sight of her.

“Uh- Do you... Do you, uh, know where the, um, soap is?” He asked, his voice nearly faltering every other word. He swallowed hard as she handed over a neatly wrapped bar of lye soap from the top of her dresser, her fingers lingering on his hand for just a moment before she looked him up and down.

“Nice tent.” She said with a smirk before turning and shutting the door behind her. Gendry swallowed hard, his cheeks flushing tomato red as he dropped his towel and turned the water on once again. This time, however, he made the water glacially cold.

+

The next day, Gendry awoke to the smells and sounds of Lyanna and Arthur Dayne making breakfast for everybody in the house who had not gone out to Yoren’s, a popular local breakfast buffet. The windows were all open and the ceiling fans all on to help the steam on its way as it rolled out of the kitchen where the couple were happily cooking sausages and scrambling eggs.

Gendry greeted his mum with a kiss on the cheek and Myrcie with a ruffle of her blonde hair before grabbing a plate of his own and sitting down at the breakfast table next to Jon.

“Did you sleep well, love?” Cersei asked between bites of buttered toast. Gendry thought back to the night. He’d remembering dreaming of Arya and the distinct smell of lye soap, but could not recall any details beyond that. The springs in that old mattress were by far the loudest thing to exist, and definitely the least comfortable, and it certainly didn’t help that his feet hung off the end of the bed. But he didn’t dare dream of saying an ungrateful word of his sleeping situation while he was in this mansion-on-stilts of a beach house, so his response was rather false.

“Yeah, I slept fine. How about you, Jon? Still fun sharing a room with your cousin?” He jested with a grin, taking up his fork and knife to dig into the Eggo waffles and sausage he had before him. Jon rolled his eyes while Ygritte grinned.

“It’s actually been quite nice to share a room! Lis and I had quite the sleepover last night, complete with hair braiding and exchanging book recommendations.” Ygritte said with a fond grin while Jon shook his head, the darkened and deepened sockets of his eyes incredibly telling.

“It was pure hell. I’m pretty sure Robb thinks you’re supposed to fill the bathroom instead of the bath. The man has his own bloody law practice but doesn’t know how to use a goddamn shower curtain.” Gendry chuckled at Jon’s lament before turning his attention to the Daynes.

“By the way, thank you so much for spearheading breakfast Mr. and Mrs. Dayne.” The tall man said with a smile. Lyanna and Arthur grinned and waved from the kitchen, saying some form of you’re welcome lost amidst the sizzling of the andouille sausages.

Gendry doused his scrambled eggs in hot sauce and began to eat as he listened to the tame chatter of his mother and sister, chuckling as Cersei wiped a bit of egg from Myrcella’s cheek, despite her protests.

“Are folks still out at Yoren’s?” Gendry asked, shoveling down the last of his eggs. Myrcella shook her head before speaking.

“The parents that went out have all gone to the Trident Historical Museum, but most everyone from our generation is back. They’re all down in the pool house.” Gendry furrowed his brows and checked the time, surprised to find that it was already half past eleven.

“Damn. Should we join them?” Gendry asked, looking at Jon, Myrcella, Lynnie, and Ygritte, who were all more or less finished with their food.

“I don’t see why not.” Jon said with a shrug. Gendry smiled, wiping his mouth with his napkin as he stood up and began collecting plates.

“I haven’t seen the pool house yet, I’m excited.” Ygritte said grinning as she handed her plate over to Gendry.

“Oh here love, let me take that from you.” Lyanna said, grabbing the dishes and silverware from him.

With the dishes of those going to the pool house cleared away, Gendry, Jon, Lynnie, Ygritte, and Myrcella began their awkward shuffle out of the kitchen, leaving Cersei, Lyanna, and Arthur to finish their coffee and breakfast slowly in peace.

The pool house was an addition made to the property approximately fifteen years prior. It was a stand alone structure, created from what had once been a groundskeepers quarters. It was the size of a small house with two rooms. The first was a small bathroom complete with towels and travel sized shampoos and soaps. The second room was a large communal space with two pool tables, several dart boards, a large L-shaped couch, a flat screen tv, a foosball table, and a block of obsidian that was used as a sort of modern-primitive-chic coffee table. Sansa, Joffrey, and Bran were engaged in a heated competition of Mario Kart, and Talisa and Robb appeared to be playing pool, however the baby bump appeared to be rather obstructive in the path of the Volanetene woman’s victory over her husband.

Gendry looked around the room, feeling his brows knit and his mouth tug downward as he noted the lack of a certain brunette five footer in the present company.

Myrcella wandered over to a dartboard as Jon began giving Ygritte the rundown of the place and turned to her older brother.

“Up for a game? Think the bull can hit the bullseye?” She teased with a mischievous glint in her green eyes. Gendry chuckled as he took the yellow feathered darts from her offering hand.

“Oh Myrcie, you’re gonna get _crushed_. That being said, ladies first.” He grinned as his sister playfully glared at him before throwing her three maroon darts. She landed two in the outer ring and one in the inner ring. Gendry tutted at her in mock disapproval, shaking his head as he readied his position. He squinted, took aim, and carefully got all three of his darts one by one within the outer bullseye. When he turned back to his sister with a devilish grin, she was scowling, only half serious.

“Bloody show off.” She snapped, her arms crossed over her chest as she turned on her heel and walked over to join in the next round of Mario Kart. 

“I love you!” He called after her, earning a lovely display of Myrcella’s middle finger. He chuckled as he removed the darts from the board before stepping back, casually aiming and throwing the maroon darts, two hitting the inner bullseye, the other hitting the outer.

“Nice aim you’ve got there.” Gendry nearly jumped out his skin, grateful that he hadn’t yet let lose the fourth dart as he turned and saw Arya leaning against the unused pool table behind him. She was wearing a black biking top and flowy blue shorts, cinched tight with shirring at the waist. “You’ve gotten better.” She said softly, her low voice almost a whisper as she gave a single nod of the head towards the dart board. Gendry swallowed, finding his throat suddenly rather dry as he scratched the nape of his neck.

“Thanks Arry, uh, so have you.” _You’ll shut up if you know what’s good for you, Baratheon._ Gendry thought as he watched Arya furrow her thick brows in confusion. “I mean, um, you look— good.” _WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT?!_ He scream-thought at himself while physically wincing at his own words. Arya chuckled at his fumble before wetting her lips with her tongue.

“Thanks, Gend. You too.” She purred, and he closed his eyes while she collected the darts from the board. He shook his head as if to reset the moment before opening his eyes back up again to find her standing right next to him, aiming a dart with an assassin’s precision.

“So how’s Braavos?” He asked, watching the first dart hit the inner bullseye.

“It’s amazing. I love it there.” She said, throwing the second one. Gendry watched in awe as the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth darts all landed within the outer bullseye. She turned around to face him after she’d thrown the last one, her gaze startling. “I’ve been studying acting.” Gendry suddenly noticed how close she was to him. Hell, she was nearly flush against him as the back of his thighs pressed against the top of the unused pool table.

“You... You always did like theatre.” He croaked, his throat dry and his pulse racing. Her round grey eyes looked up into his, glittering with bad intentions and mischief. There was a moment where nothing was said, just the two of them looking at each other, the air between them so thoroughly electric he was sure that if he touched her, he would get shocked.

“Gendry?” She asked, her voice barely above a whisper. She was inches from him. She even _smelled_ electric, like metal, and he _swore_ he could taste copper. Jesus Christ in heaven, every nerve in his body was on fire.

“Ye- Yeah?” He whispered back, swallowing. A bead of sweat slid down his back. Surely it hadn’t been this hot just a moment ago?

“Would you mind stepping out of the way so I can get to the pool cues? Robb just challenged me to a game.” Gendry broke from the spell, awkwardly aware of the many gazes on him as he stepped aside. Arya grabbed a cue and some chalk from the green felt of the pool table behind him, smirking as she covered the end.

Gendry’s heart rate began to slow as he removed the darts from the board one by one, his breath regulating as he heard the clattering of Robb collecting the stripes and solids into the triangle. Once the tall man had returned to a state of regulated homeostasis, he turned around to watch the game. He turned around just in time to see Robb sink his fourth stripe. Arya cursed under her breath as she watched him take aim for number five. The white ball hit the yellow stripe, and after three pings off the edge, it stopped just before the cup.

“Ohhhh! Not _so_ brilliant at pool after all, are we, darling?” Talisa teased with a grin. Robb rolled his eyes playfully as he stood up straight and gently placed his hands on his wife’s hips.

“Still better than you, love.” He said with a cheeky grin before stealing a kiss. Gendry turned his attention to Arya who was focusing intently. Her position was all wrong, her eye-line nowhere nearly lined up with the cue, and her back was far too straight as she took aim. In that instant, Gendry decided to help, if only just to ensure that his beloved, but cocky friend didn’t win.

“Arry, you’re doing it all wrong.” He said, his voice low and gruff as he took position behind her. She inhaled sharply as he covered her small hands with his large ones, but just loud enough for him to notice. “You’ll want to straighten up a bit. Match your line of vision with your cue. And you’re stood up too straight.” Suddenly, feeling rather daring, Gendry leaned forward, his chest flush against her back as he bent her over. “You’ll want to lean down a bit more, like this.” He said, loud enough for everyone to hear, if only to throw them off the scent. Arya swallowed hard and nodded, giving Gendry his cue to stand up straight and backed away a couple steps. She squinted as she took aim before shooting and sinking the red solid. She grinned as she turned back to Gendry, who raised his right hand for a high five, which she readily gave. As soon as their hands collided, however, he held hers in place.

“Just remember that two can always play at this game.” He said grinning, his voice low enough for only her to hear. Her left eyebrow cocked upward ever so slightly and her mouth broke into a small grin as he dropped her hand before she took aim  
again, sinking the yellow solid, then the blue solid, and on and on until she sunk the black eight ball. As Robb lamented, Talisa teased, and Arya turned back to Gendry who was watching while leaned against the wall.

“Thanks for the lesson, Gend.” She said. “Come out to the riverbank at midnight. Some of us are going swimming. But don’t bring anyone else along.” Gendry nodded before Arya tossed him her cue, jogging to the other side of the pool house and plopping down beside her sister just in time for a new round of Mario Kart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 2!!! The final chapter will be up tomorrow— this was such a fun fic!! huge shoutout to the mods of the gendrya bigbang for organizing this:)


	3. Oh so THAT’S what this is about

**August 15th, 2013**

Robb and Jon and Theon had all just left for uni, and Arya was thoroughly un-entertained. Lynara Dayne was away at her boarding school for violin, Sansa was far too tied up with her new theatre program to pay any attention to her little sister, Bran had made it clear that he only cared about drawing alone in his room, and Rickon was only eight. School was supposed to start soon, and then Arya figured she might have a chance at defeating boredom. Her mum had convinced her to go hang out with Myrcella Baratheon across the street, but _good lord_ that girl’s intense interest in horses was off putting. So there she sat in the attic of the Baratheons house, hiding from her peer who had enthusiastically shown her some rather _questionable_ horse drawings, lamenting the absence of her brothers and cousin as she turned another page in the copy of Their Eyes Were Watching God she’d found in the bookcase. She was just reading about Janie kissing Johnny Taylor underneath the pear tree when she heard the old attic door swing open.

The twelve year old Arya scrambled to her feet, panicking as she tried to think up some lost-on-the-way-to-the-bathroom type story to tell Myrcie when she looked up and saw Myrcella’s older brother Gendry looking at her, slightly confused a few steps in from the doorway. Her throat dried up as they locked eyes, her knees suddenly feeling rather unsure of themselves as he furrowed his brows and adjusted his posture. He was seventeen years old and stood at 6’1”, and was allegedly still growing (at least, according to Jon, who had remarked with a groan when his doctor predicted he would remain standing at 5’9” into adulthood). Gendry rowed with the crew team, and his shortsleeved t-shirt stained with fresh summer sweat highlighted the muscles that he’d earned from it. Still remaining quiet, he eyed the book still open by her feet before picking it up and inspecting the cover. He then looked back at her, sharp blue eyes seeming to see through her like an X-Ray.

“Where’d you get this?” He asked, finally breaking the silence. Arya swallowed hard before responding.

“I saw it on the book shelf by the window.” She said, embarrassed by the jumbling of her words. Gendry looked to the bookcase before looking back to the book and then back at her, the silence nearly deafening.

“Their Eyes Were Watching God is some heavy stuff for a twelve year old.” He said, a hint of disapproval and a hint of admiration in his voice that confused the hell out of her.

“Well I’m a heavy girl.” She countered, to which Gendry furrowed his brows skeptically.

“You can’t weigh any more than eighty pounds.” He said. Arya rolled her eyes before grabbing the book back out of his hands.

“That’s not what I meant.” She scoffed, brushing past him towards the door.

“Wait, Arya,” He called, gently grabbing her arm before she could leave. Arya felt a bolt of electricity run through her and for a single moment, she swore she had forgotten how to breathe.

“What?” She asked, attempting to mask her breathlessness with irritation. Gendry glanced at the clock on the wall.

“How long have you been up here? Myrcie told me that you’d left an hour ago.” Gendry asked. Arya shrugged, trying to feign nonchalance despite her pounding heart.

“Maybe an hour and a half? Two hours? Time slipped me by.” Gendry looked down at his feet and began to chuckle softly.

“It was the horse art that scared you off, wasn’t it?” He asked, his eyes twinkling in the light coming in through the circular attic window. Arya giggled.

“They’re horrific! I’m sure the horses at the stable she frequents would _not_ appreciate her artistic ideas about My Little Pony.” Gendry smiled even wider, gently releasing the grip on her arm.

“It’s an odd phase and one I’m sure she’ll grow out of, but for now, I agree it is horrific.” He said with a smile. Arya grinned slightly before he handed her the book back. “Here. I’m sure this’ll keep you more entertained than my sister’s drawings of ripped horses in swim trunks.” Arya accepted it gratefully, turning to leave before stopping in the doorway.

“What are you doing up here anyways?” She asked, brows furrowed. Gendry stretched, reaching up to the top of a wardrobe before grabbing down a black disc folder. He opened it, flipping through before stopping, grabbing out the desired disc and pausing before flipping it around.

“Promise me you won’t tell.” He said, his voice mildly playful yet serious, as if he were about to reveal some embarrassing truth. Arya knit her brows together, almost annoyed.

“Who would I tell? Jon and Robb and Theon are all gone. I suppose could tell Joff, and I’m sure he‘d tell all his emo friends about it while they meet over Omegle. I could tell Myrcella, and she’s tell all her horse girl friends. Or I could tell Tommen, who is eight.” Gendry narrowed his eyes at her, grin widening.

“You know for a girl so tiny you sure do have a big mouth.” He teased. She grinned.

“Incorrect, my mouth is tiny. Now show me what that cd is.” She retorted. Gendry tightened his lips sheepishly before flipping the disc to reveal the Sims 3 logo. Arya’s face broke into a grin as she backed away from the attic door.

“I have a laptop up here where I play the Sims in secret. If any of my crew buddies knew...” He trailed off, pulling out his laptop from a cardboard box.

“They’d throw you into the harbor?” She asked, dragging the beanbag she’d been sitting in over to him.

“Exactly.” He said, placing the disc into the laptop before firing up the Sims 3 loading page. “Do you wanna stay a bit and help me create the characters from Twilight?” He asked. Arya squinted her eyes, a devilish grin creeping across her lips.

“You really are a loser.” She teased, to which Gendry just laughed.

“You’d never know it by watching me with your brothers and Jon, but yeah.” Arya settled into her bean bag, and a sudden moment of calm washed over her as she realized that perhaps the absence of her brothers and cousin wouldn’t be nearly as bad as she’d previously thought.

**Present day**

It was damn hard sneaking down from the attic apartment without waking every single goddamn person in the house with the old, creaky floorboards, but somehow Gendry managed. He could only assume that Arya was already at the riverbank as he slipped out from the front door. The water that ran through the grass beside the laneway whistled softly, gently smushing beneath his feet as he walked through the gentle inch deep stream. The moon shone silver on the surface of the river as Gendry approached. He checked his digital watch, to be sure that he had the right time as he looked around the bank, not seeing anyone. Maybe she’d just got him out here to embarrass him?

“I’m glad you came.” Arya called, and Gendry turned around to look at her. She was dressed in a black robe style bikini cover that flowed behind her as the wind gently blew it. She carried a towel which she hung up on a willow branch, walking through the water grass until she stood directly in front of him.

“Where are the others?” He asked, his voice hoarse. Arya grinned mischievously.

“They cancelled.” She whispered, and he got the thrilling feeling that they never existed to begin with. “Come on now, I know you’re sweating from the humidity. This heat is inescapable even at night, so if you don’t mind, I’m going to go for a dip in the river.” Arya untied her robe, facing away from him and when the cover dropped, Gendry swore could swear his heart stopped.

She was naked.

She then ran into the river and submerged before coming back up, the waterline just above her breasts as she flipped her hair back.

“Well come on!” She beckoned, that evil grin still on her face. Gendry swallowed hard as he hesitantly waded in after her, his swim trunks still on. Arya paddled over to him, treading in place as she examined him with the scrutinizing gaze of a reader.

“Gendry do you know why I’ve asked you here tonight?” She asked. He paused, trying to think of a non presumptive response to her question.

“I... I don’t think so?” He said, wishing he wasn’t so damn awkward.

“Do you remember that day in the attic when you found me hiding from Myrcie and reading Sarah’s Key?” She asked lazily. Gendry nodded.

“Of course. We made the green skinned Twilight cast on the Sims.” Arya nodded, grinning softly.

“Something woke up in my that day. I remember I was reading Their Eyes Were Watching God, reading about Janie watching the bees, kissing the boy under the pear tree. And minutes later, you showed up. I didn’t realize it at the time, but I had more or less been introduced to previously unknown realities of sex in the same moment that i was introduced to previously unknown realities of you. You had just been some guy my brothers hung around with. Then you were my friend, and someone I wanted. A year later, you left for uni in King’s Landing and a part of me was heartbroken, but another part of me was pleased. It was _smug._ I’d grow into a woman and you wouldn’t be there to see it. We’d meet again someday I would utterly blindside you. You would be introduced to _my_ previously unknown realities. So here we are. Swimming together in this river. You’re barely clothed and I’m fully naked. And we’re sleeping in adjacent rooms. I’m going to let you connect the dots on what I’d like you to do to me when you get back to the house.” Arya stared at him for a moment after finishing her monologue, a hint of hesitation in her eyes before she turned around and left the river, hurrying to dry herself off. She then slipped back into her robe, walking towards the house at a leisurely pace, leaving Gendry stood dumbfounded in the river.

So that was what this was all about. She wanted to fuck him. Had she always? She just told him yes. His head was starting to hurt. But in that moment, all he knew for certain was that he was damned if he wasn’t aroused. Gendry slowly got out of the river, walking back towards the house in a slow, zombie-like trance. He hadn’t even bothered to dry himself off, dripping water all throughout the house as he followed the path back up to the attic. When he opened the door, Arya was sitting on the bed in a t-shirt of his that hung gracefully off her shoulder. She looked over her shoulder at him from where she sat at her vanity. She started to get up but he put a hand up as if to stop her, signaling her to sit back down.

“I’d just like to say one thing before— well, um. Before. These past twenty four hours have _really_ been fucking with my head, and I— I don’t quite... quite know what to make of this whole situation but I do think that I’d like to have sex with you.” Arya raised her brows, that same mischievous grin returning to her lips as she stood and walked over to him. She ran her hands up from across his chest, stopping to twirl a finger in his wisps of chest hair, inspecting his body with the lightest of touch before looking back up into his eyes and saying a single word.

“Good.”

Gendry cupped her face with his hands and kissed her, his heart still racing with an odd anxiety, some part of him fearing that it was all just some kind of prank. She met his lips with a warm and slow kiss, her hands moving up into his jet black hair, her fingernails tracing soft circles in his scalp. Gendry relaxed at the sensation, and his grip on her face loosened, his large and calloused hands moving down to her neck, his body standing flush against hers now.

As she felt his body ease, Arya moved her hands down from his hair to hook around his neck and shoulders, leaning him down to her. Gendry took the hint, moving his hands to firmly grasp her ass and lift her up, her toned legs instantly hooking around his waist. Their kiss deepened as he walked her over to the bed, turning and falling down on his back. Arya gave that same mischievous grin as she sat up, flipping her still-damp dark hair before pulling her (well, _his_ ) shirt off and tossing it aside. She hurried to help him shimmy out of his trunks, during which point she gave an impressed smirk at the size of his manhood. Gendry ran his hands up her thighs to her hips to her breasts, sitting up to lean her back and run his tongue across her nipples. He then dragged his open mouth across her chest, scraping his teeth on her soft skin of her collarbones before moving up, sucking a love bite onto the pulse point of her neck. His arms wrapped around her waist, his hands moving slowly and firmly against the skin of her back.

Arya purred, tossing her head back before reaching one hand down and grabbing his manhood. He helped to position himself at her entrance before she sank down, a satisfying _ah_ escaping from both their mouths. They sat there a moment, entirely still before they began to move. Arya rocked her hips, Gendry pressing lazy kissing onto her open mouth, their hearts pounding, their bodies purely electric. She kissed him hard before pressing him down onto his back, still sat up straight, his hands moving down to her hips, driving her down as they moved as one. His right hand moved to her clit, rubbing circles as she gasped at the sensation. She moved faster, his heart beating harder, both of them sweating, both of them desperate, both of them climbing higher and higher until orgasm hit them both at the same time.

Once they had ridden it out together, Arya collapsed onto his chest, his manhood slipping out of her with a plop sound. Hey they were both panting and glistening with sweat as Arya began to trace invisible circles on his chest.

“You don’t have to worry about me getting pregnant, by the way. I have an arm implant.” She whispered. Gendry’s muscled arm snaked around her waist, suddenly relieved of a worry he hadn’t even thought to have a moment before.

“Oh brilliant. I think one pregnant woman is enough for this house.” Gendry said, his voice a low purr, at which Arya gave a deep chuckle, as she rested her chin on his chest. Gendry smiled, kissing her forehead while absentmindedly tracing his calloused pointer finger along her waistline.

“God, those two have had quite the whirlwind.” She muttered. Gendry furrowed his brows.

“How so?” He asked, to which Arya sighed as she shifted into a more comfortable position.

“Well, they met when Robb represented one of her clients in a lawsuit against a pharmaceutical company, and five months later they got married in a courthouse. The first time we met her was actually _after_ the wedding. Her Volantene parents nearly burst a blood vessel when they heard about her five minute wedding and McDonald’s drivethru reception, but they’ve all come around.” The second weight of the evening fell off of Gendry’s mind. _He_ hadn’t been invited to the wedding because _nobody_ had. Without meaning to, the tall mechanic grinned.

“Sounds lovely, if I’m being honest. And they’re happy?” Arya nodded, rubbing her legs against his.

“Happy as clams.” They lay there for a moment, both of them beyond grateful for the little AirCon unit in Arya’s window.

The rest of the summer went by fast. Their fucking turned into hanging out, which turned into dating, which turned into, by the end of the summer, a damn serious relationship, capped off by the surprise birth of Robb and Talisa’s son, Eddard Maegyr “Eddie” Stark.

By the end of their last day, Gendry found himself sending Hot Pie another three months rent to cover the time it took to find another roommate as he would be moving into a small Braavosi apartment with his girlfriend, Arya Stark. It all had happened quickly, it certainly shocked the family, but he’d be damned if he wasn’t in ecstasy every time she flashed him that classic Arya grin. He supposed that was why he learned a trade, so he could move anywhere. So as he placed the last of his boxes in their bookish apartment overlooking the Braavosi canals, Arya read out her schedule for the upcoming academic year, and he planned his work hours accordingly.

Good lord, how did he end up here?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the end!! this fic was going to be longer originally, but i kinda liked it short and sweet— shoutout to the tumblr anon for reminding me to post chapter 3😂😭 hope you enjoyed!!


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